FORT MYERS, Fla. — “He’s a development staff’s dream because he’s young, he has a live arm, he’s athletic, he’s got a good frame to put on weight and he works hard.”
That was how Red Sox director of player development Brian Abraham described 20-year-old pitching prospect Elmer Rodriguez-Cruz earlier this year. The righty from Puerto Rico posted a 2.60 ERA in 14 starts for Low-A Salem in 2023. Opponents batted .219 against him.
Baseball America ranks Cruz No. 24 on its Red Sox top 30 prospect list. He has mid-90s velocity, a four-pitch mix and size. He’s 6-foot-3, 175 pounds and should put on more weight as he continues to mature.
He was only 17 years old when Boston selected him in the fourth round (105th overall) out of Leadership Christian Academy in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico in 2021. He decided to forgo his commitment to the University of Oregon to sign with the Red Sox for $497,500. He has a 2.31 ERA in 27 outings (24 starts) in pro ball so far.
“Young developmentally on and off the field,” Abraham said. “He doesn’t have a lot of game experience coming from Puerto Rico. So I think the biggest thing when he came in was getting him more athletic, stronger, putting weight on him. That’s something we’re still working on with him.
“He’s a guy that can get it up there in the mid-90s but I think working his best at 92, 94,” Abraham added. “He has three secondary complements that allow him to get outs in the strike zone.”
Rodriguez missed some time this past season with right elbow inflammation. But he returned in September and he’s healthy now as he begins the offseason.
“I think it went well,” he said about his 2023 season during Boston’s Fall Performance Program at JetBlue Park in Fort Myers in September. “Nobody expects to be injured but besides that, I started the season strong. I feel like I was doing great. I was developing some stuff the organization wants me to do. I feel like I was doing all those things.”
Rodriguez-Cruz was between 92-95 mph with his four-seam fastball. He said it usually averaged 93 mph.
“My goal is to go north of it (93 mph) a little bit more,” he said. “And just attack with it. Be competitive with it. … Usually my fastball works well at the top of the zone because it rises a little bit. I feel like the top of the zone is where it best plays.”
He also throws a curveball, changeup and slider.
“This year was like a development year with it (the slider) and it felt good,” he said. The more I was throwing it, the more I was feeling it.
“Since the curveball goes down in the zone, that’s why I was developing a slider,” he added. “A pitch that could go in to hitters. Since I have the changeup that runs away and the fastball goes up, I have all those pitches to change the eye level on guys and it works to my advantage.”
He threw the slider in 2022 but it was a pitch he didn’t often use.
“This year is when I bumped it up a little bit (in usage). I was throwing it more. I felt like I was having good success with it. It’s continuing to throw it and develop it.”
The next step for him is building strength.
“That’s going to help me to improve velo and all that and stay healthy,” he said. “I feel like working on my body is my main priority.”
Rodriguez-Cruz grew up a big fan of Puerto Rican star pitcher Edwin Diaz of the Mets.
“The guy I’ve been compared most to … is Edwin Diaz,” he said. “Because growing up, we had the same body type: tall, skinny, all that. That’s a guy that I look forward to continue learning from him. And that’s one of the guys I used to like watching when I was growing up.”
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He’s also would be interested in chatting with Chris Sale because they share a similar physique.
“The success he’s had being skinny and dominating in the big leagues, he’s a guy I look forward to continuing watching and learning a couple things from him,” Rodriguez-Cruz said.
Red Sox assistant GM Eddie Romero saw Rodriguez-Cruz pitch for Salem against the Columbia Fireflies in May.
“in that particular outing, I think the thing that most stood out was he competed. He had good stuff but he competed his ass off. I remember his fastball was good. It was hitting 92, 94. Breaking ball, I think he sharpened it up some. The changeup that day was his best pitch. A lot of swings and misses. … He’s got a lot of potential physically and plenty of space to fill out.”
Other stories from the Red Sox’s Fall Performance Program:
Red Sox prospect plays with Pedroia ‘mentality,’ saw ‘08 MVP just miss feat
‘Muscular’ Red Sox C prospect has ‘5 hole’ power, cool reason for catching
New Red Sox OF prospect beat cancer, cousin ‘saved’ his life with tackle
Red Sox’ Xander Bogaerts comp pick ‘a tough out,’ ‘elite’ in important area
Top Red Sox prospect with ‘best’ fastball (98 mph) studies Justin Verlander
Red Sox prospect up to 97 mph ‘motivated’ by mentor Brayan Bello, ex-roomie
Red Sox power-hitting C prospect read Ted Williams’ book ‘a million times’
Red Sox’ Nate Eovaldi comp pick went ‘straight to’ mall after being drafted
